Dan Armstrong - Man & Guitars

At left and right, Justin Pearson has played in numerous bands over his career employing a Dan Armstrong bass in modified form.

At left and right, earlier in his career Pearson played in an unusual grindcore band from San Diego called The Locust that some say are known for their unique mix of grind speed and aggression, complexity, and new wave weirdness. Dressed up and often sounding like the creatures they emulate, Pearson can be seen playing his Dan Armstrong bass, of which he has two that are, according to him, totally identical.

At left and right, Pearson playing while wearing army surplus goggles.

At left, still wearing goggles, while at right, I'm not exactly sure what that hood is supposed to represent.

At left, Pearson holds up his two Dan Armstrong basses. Both are equipped with EMG pickups, but as can be seen, the bass on the left sports a Badass tunable bridge, while the model on the right still has the original factory bridge/tailpiece combination. At right, and some time later the Badass model has been modified with a locust decal.

Above left Pearson poses with his Armstrong bass as well as some Ampeg amps, while at right, his bass can be seen adorning replacement tuners.

After Locust, Pearson found himself in the band Head Wound City seen here playing at The Smell, an all-age, alcohol/drug-free punk rock venue in Downtown Los Angeles on 9/21/14. Here Pearson is playing the model with the badass bridge/tailpiece.

Pearson and Head Wound City in 2016 at various venues. At left, guitarist Cody Votolato's guitar has three red strips, or 'flags' on his guitar, maybe in honor of Black Flag. At right, it is unknown what type of plate, or cover sits atop the tongue of the neck on this bass.

At left, notice how high up the neck and the upper strings Pearson is playing. also notice his unique picking, maybe strumming style. He's playing the instrument like he's doing a lead solo on a guitar. At right, more of the same, and even higher up the neck.

At left and right, in 2016 at FYF Fest, (short for "F-Yeah Fest") - an annual three-day music festival held at the Los Angeles Exposition Park in Los Angeles.

In an interview with Pearson, which can be viewed on YouTube he talks about his Dan Armstrong · Ampeg bass as well as a few experiences when travelling with it in Canada. It can be viewed here.

Another band that Pearson plays in is Dead Cross. Formed in 2015, it's another hardcore punk group formed in Southern California. At left, and playing his usual stage instrument with the Badass bridge, the enlarged view will show another Dan Armstrong bass on a guitar stand just left of his amp. Most likely it serves as a backup, or perhaps it is tuned differently. At right, the same bass where the replacement tuners can easily be seen.

Above left and right, playing at The Observatory in 2017. At right, notice again how high up the neck he plays at times.

As seen at left and right, Dead Cross at the Showbox Theatre in Seattle in 2017.

At left and right, more shots from The Observatory. Notice all the cell phones/cameras in use by the audience.

At left, Pearson and percussionist Dave Lombardo get their groove on, while vocalist Mike Patton sings on. At right, Pearson and Lombardo play on. A good view of the mods to Pearson's Dan Armstrong bass can be seen.

At left, another user of the Dan Armstrong instrument is Gene Perla who is reported to have begun his musical studies at age five with the piano. His first jazz influence was Nat 'King' Cole. In high school he played the trombone and sang at times. Later he attended the Berklee School of Music and apparently became inspired to play the bass guitar after hearing jazz bassist Charlie Haden, after which he began to play professionally.

In 1966, Gene moved back to the New York City area and landed his first major gig, which was with The Willie Bobo Sextet. Next came the bands of Nina Simone, Woody Herman, Sarah Vaughan, Elvin Jones, Thad Jones/Mel Lewis and Sonny Rollins. During this period it's reported that he formed the P. M. Records label, and with keyboardist Jan Hammer he founded Red Gate Recording Studio. At right, and seen in it's entirety in the enlarged view, along with Don Alias on drums and Steve Grossman on saxophone, the group Stone Alliance was formed. They would go on to travel to three continents and record four albums.

At left and right, all during this time Gene accessed his Dan Armstrong · Ampeg bass.

At left and right, Stone Alliance in concert. Through the years both Perla and Alias have remained constant members.

At left and right, Aerosmith's Joe Perry often times accesses a Dan Armstrong · Ampeg guitar, usually for slide work.

At left, and playing what looks to be an original 69-71 model (based on the apparent lack of an eighth screw on the scratchplate) that's been modified in the usual way - with a narrowed tailpiece and a tuneable style bridge. Notice the knobs, and how the volume, (or top in this photo) knob... looks different, more like a Tele knob, whereas the tone (lower knob in this photo) looks original to the instrument. This may be on purpose, as musicians sometimes prefer the knobs to be/feel different - so that they don't have to look down to be certain they are adjusting the correct knob.

At right, and playing a re-issue Dan Armstrong (8 scratchplate screws) and what no doubt is a custom made pickup with a wooden surround that not only serves as a filler for the pickup - but also allows for an electrical connection to the guitars circuitry via the banana plugs.

Above left and right, it appears that he uses the same white colored type of slide most often.

Above left and right, it is seldom (if ever) that Perry plays a concert without a Dan Armstrong plexi.

Perry in 2017. I expected him to be playing a re-issue but in the enlarged view, notice the lack of the extra screw on the scratchplate, meaning he's most likely playing an original model.

Perry playing slide on his Dan Armstrong. Another Dan Armstrong player, Dave Grohl - is playing along in the background.

Notice above - this Dan Armstrong has what looks like a Tele type knob on the tone control whereas the volume knob looks original. One can on;y assume that Joe goes by the feel of the knob rather than peering down to make sure he isn't accidently adjusting the volume knob, and vise-versa. At right, and using the model with the wooden pickup spacer. Notice the lack of a tone control knob.

Above, both photos feature the Dan Armstrong model that lacks a tone knob. The reason remains a mystery.

Above, Joe rockin-out in style while at right, and as seen here is a reissue model with a Kent Armstrong ST pickup that Joe uses. As stated on that web site "The Dan Armstrong ‘Plexi’ has found its way into the hands of many stars over the years, not least Mr. Perry." Notice how very little of the white lettering on the scratchplate can be seen. In fact, only the last couple of letters of the word Ampeg can somewhat be made out - attesting to how much Joe utilizes his Dan Armstrong instruments. Notice a washer under the output jack. It's unknown if the plate is cracked in this area, or if it's there as a preventative measure. There appears to be a bit of a modification in front of the rosewood bridge that looks like a phillips screw which is better seen in the enlarged view. The reason for it's existance is unknown.

At left and right, Joe Perry on March 3^rd 1990 in concert at Inglewood California during Aerosmith's 'Pump' Tour. Notice the use of a slide on his ring finger. Notice too the use of what looks like a Tele type knob at left. Maybe to help him differentiate between the volume and the tone control. At right, a negative of the photo seen on the left.

Above, a Marshall stack provides a background for Joe Perry's re-issue Dan Armstrong guitar. In the enlarged view, notice that the pickup is a custom made unit that is secured (by epoxy I'd guess) to a wooden holder. The holder is the exact size of a Dan Armstrong pickup, complete with the female banana jacks that allow it to slide in and connect to the guitars circuitry like any Dan Armstrong pickup. Notice too, the lack of a tone control knob. At right, and playing slide - you can see a portion of the aforementionrd wooden holder just next to the thumb on Perry's right hand. Notice the tone knob is back.

Tom Petty has often times slung on a Dan Armstrong · Ampeg guitar. At left, it is apparent that he's had the scratchplate replaced with a chrome metal one, perhaps due to breakage of the original (being the rest of the instrument appears to be stock). At right, it is unknown if a Straplock or similar system was used or not, but a rather large washer is employed and can be seen by the strap peg.

At left, Tom Petty performing with a Dan Armstrong guitar. At first, I couldn't tell if this was an earlier photo, or if he has more than one plexi guitar as the scratchplate on this model appears to be the faux-wood original. One the right, and what appears to be from the same venue, a colored photo shows it to be the replacement scratchplate. Notice that unlike many other players Petty isn't seen using a slide in any of his photos.

Petty's 'then' lead guitarist, Mike Campbell, can also be seen playing a Dan Armstrong · Ampeg guitar as well, though it is unknown if they played them on-stage at the same time or not.

At left, Georgia Satellites bassist Rick Price occasionally plays a Dan Armstrong · Ampeg bass. The enlarged view reveals replacement volume and tone knobs. In addition, there appears to be some repairs in and around the output jack as it looks like black plastic or other material is supporting the area. At upper right, it's unknown if Rick is playing the same bass or not, but some mods have been done to it, including a replacement pickup and scratchplate.

At left, as a young bassist, Priest strapped on a Dan Armstrong bass, while at right and in a more recent photo Rick still accesses his plexi. This one has a replacement black scratchplate and what appears to be a matching ebony bridge saddlepiece and thumb-rest.

At left, and seen just to the right of percussionist Mick Tucker of the rock band Sweet, bassist Steve Priest is seen playing a Dan Armstrong · Ampeg bass. At right Priest is seen next to guitarist Andy Scott.

At left and right, Priest would use the Dan Armstrong bass throughout his time with Sweet.

As seen at left and right, Steve taped down the volume and tone controls on his bass. It is unknown as to why - but one guess might be that perhaps he kept moving them accidentally by his playing style.

As seen at left and right, Rick Priest and Sweet, with their audience all around them. Actually more like a projected backdrop image behind them. Seen better in enlarged views notice that unlike the photos seen just prior that only the tone control knob is taped down. It is unknown as to why but perhaps the tape on the volume knob peeled away. Notice too, the photo on the right was autographed.